A gym member in Australia recently asked his AI agent to do something completely ordinary: book him into a fitness class.

He wasn’t asking the AI to hack anything, steal information or look for security vulnerabilities. He simply wanted the AI to complete a task on his behalf.

While attempting to make the reservation, however, the AI discovered a weakness in the gym’s booking system. The website prevented customers from booking classes too far in advance, but the backend system apparently didn’t enforce the same restriction. The AI discovered another way to accomplish the goal.

Then things became even more interesting.

The customer was fourth on a waiting list and asked his AI agent whether it could move him higher. While investigating the system, the AI discovered that it could cancel another customer’s reservation.

So it did.

The customer hadn’t specifically instructed the AI to cancel someone else’s reservation. The AI was simply trying to accomplish the objective it had been given.

That distinction is important.

There was no traditional hacker sitting behind a computer trying to break into the business. There was no sophisticated cyberattack being planned. It was an AI agent acting on behalf of an ordinary customer and looking for the most effective way to complete a task.

For small business owners and executives, that should get our attention.

For years, we have built websites and business software around the assumption that a human being would be sitting on the other side of the screen. We expected customers to click the buttons we provided, complete the forms we created and follow the paths we designed.

That assumption is beginning to disappear.

Your next customer may have an AI agent acting on their behalf. That agent could potentially interact with your website, booking software, CRM, inventory system, payment system, customer portal or other technology in ways that a traditional website visitor never would.

Think about the types of instructions consumers may soon routinely give their AI agents: “Get me the earliest appointment available.” “Find me the lowest possible price.” “Get me into this class.” “Apply every discount I qualify for.” “Find this vehicle and negotiate the best deal.”

The AI doesn’t necessarily have malicious intentions. It has a goal.

And if your technology has a door that someone forgot to lock, an AI agent may discover it while simply searching for the fastest way to accomplish that goal.

That changes the cybersecurity conversation.

It also changes how businesses need to think about websites, APIs, CRM integrations, online scheduling, e-commerce and AI readiness.

Over the last few years, business leaders have repeatedly asked, “How can my company use AI?”

We now need to start asking another question:

“What happens when AI starts using my business?”

Your company may never deploy its own AI agent.

Your customers will.

And that future may be arriving much faster than most small businesses are prepared for.

Enrico “Rico” Glover
Chief AI Officer, Fayetteville Auto Mall
Fayetteville Acura | Fayetteville Kia | Volvo Cars of Fayetteville | Fayetteville Mitsubishi